PWHL
“It’s like a Christmas present that came early.”
For all of the talk of the turnover impacting the Boston Fleet’s roster amid an eventful offseason, first-year head coach Kris Sparre doesn’t want to harp on what his team had lost over the summer.
Rather, his focus over the last few weeks on what his team had gained via an influx of fresh, young talent. And, perhaps more importantly, on the foundations that remained in place for a roster looking to bounce back from a lost season in 2024-25.
It’s hard to push back against such confidence in his roster, especially given the steadying presence provided by one of those franchise fixtures in goalie Aerin Frankel.
“It’s like a Christmas present that came early,” Sparre said of his netminder.
Frankel was once again flawless between the pipes on Wednesday night at Boston University’s Agganis Arena, stopping all 21 shots that came her way en route to a 2-0 win over the Vancouver Goldeneyes.
Fueled by Frankel’s second shutout performance in three games this season, the Fleet are 3-0 to open a year for the first time in franchise history — and are the last unbeaten team in the league.
“Being 3-0 is incredible,” Frankel said. “Obviously it’s a really long season, but if you like how you’re playing at the beginning of the year, it’s a pretty good indication of what this group is capable of.”
Abby Newhook and Jill Saulnier both scored for the Fleet, who largely controlled play for the first two periods by way of relentless forechecking pressure and a structured neutral-zone defense.
When the Goldeneyes were able to generate quality chances, Frankel served as the great equalizer. The Northeastern product only allowed one goal over 71 total shots on goal so far this season (.986 save percentage).
“When you have goaltending that is that solid, it gives your team confidence in any situation,” Sparre said. “Whether you’re having a great first period, whether you’re down in a game, it keeps the belief strong that we have a wall behind us. … She works so hard at her craft and deserves everything that she gets coming her way.”
Boston only needed to put 12 shots on goal to come away with a road win over Toronto on Saturday night. They surpassed that volume in the first period alone on Wednesday night against Vancouver — outshooting the Goldeneyes, 19-2, through the first 20 minutes of play.
Despite peppering Vancouver netminder Emerance Maschmeyer throughout that opening frame, the Fleet only managed to push one puck past her in the first.
A slap shot doled out by Hadley Hartmetz generated Boston’s opening tally less than five minutes into the contest. Hartmetz’s blast clanged off a scrum of skaters near the crease, with Theresa Schafzahl’s backhand shot clanging off Maschmeyer’s pads.
But, Newhook was there to bounce on the loose puck — delivering a chip shot that sailed over Maschmeyer and into the open net to make it a 1-0 game. It marked the second time in two games that the rookie lit the lamp.
“She’s so smart,” Sparre said of Newhook. “She’s a step ahead of everybody. … She’s very crafty around the net. She can make plays in tight areas. And someone that we’re excited about.”
Boston pushed hard to try and double its lead in the first period, routinely hemming their opponents in their own zone with suffocating puck pressure. By the time Vancouver finally landed a puck in against a dormant Frankel down the other end of the ice, there was just 5:04 left in the period.
Vancouver ramped up its efforts in the following frame. Even though only six shots managed to get through to Frankel over that stretch, just about all of them were generated in Grade-A ice.
Those quality scoring chances — headlined by a one-time blast from Izzy Daniel off a counterrush — were all snuffed out by Frankel’s glove.
The Goldeneyes — one of the PWHL’s new expansion clubs anchored by stars like Sarah Nurse and Sophie Jaques — has often saved their best for crunch time so far this season.
Four of Vancouver’s five goals in regulation entering Wednesday came in the third period.
But, Boston was the lone team to light the lamp over those final 20 minutes of play on Commonwealth Ave.
After Jaques fumbled a puck at the offensive blue line for the Goldeneyes, the fleet-footed Saulnier struck.
The Halifax native scooped up the puck and turned on the afterburners, skating ahead of both Jacques and Mellissa Channell-Watkins in race toward Maschmeyer’s net.
As both Jacques and Channell-Watkins closed in, Saulnier shielded the puck on her backhand before snapping a quick wrister just under Maschmeyer’s glove to give the Fleet some breathing room.
“You never want to be in the D zone for too long,” Saulnier said. “But we have Aerin back there, so she saves everything. … But that’s why you got to just battle, and that’s what we practice — is putting ourselves in the best position to get it out.
“I was lucky enough to get [the puck] off my foot and pop it out of the zone and take off as quick as I could to get it out. That’s the game, it’s just about capitalizing on chances.”
Frankel didn’t budge down the other end of the ice, turning aside all 13 shots that came her way in the third to secure another shutout just two weeks into the season.
With Frankel playing at this level, the Fleet like their odds whenever they take to the ice this season.
But, Sparre believes his reworked team is just scratching the surface at this stage of a new hockey campaign.
“It’s a great feeling to start like this,” he said. “It’s cliche, but we’re really a process-driven staff and team, so we’re kind of looking at this as a beginning point. We still have a lot of work to do.
“And for as well as we’ve played, and for the wins that have come with that, we feel like we’re not even to the point of where we want to get to with this team. There’s so much untapped potential in our whole entire lineup.”
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